REPORT TITLE:
Legislative Sessions


DESCRIPTION:
Proposes amendment to article III, section 10 of the Hawaii
Constitution to provide for the legislature to meet in regular
session only in odd-numbered years.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        
THE SENATE                              S.B. NO.           956
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________


                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT
PROPOSING AN AMENDMENT TO ARTICLE III, SECTION 10, OF THE HAWAII
   CONSTITUTION, TO PROVIDE FOR THE LEGISLATURE TO MEET IN
   REGULAR SESSION ONLY IN ODD-NUMBERED YEARS.



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  The purpose of this Act is to propose an
 
 2 amendment to article III, section 10, of the Constitution of the
 
 3 State of Hawaii to provide for the legislature to meet in regular
 
 4 session only in odd-numbered years.
 
 5      SECTION 2.  Article III, section 10, of the Constitution of
 
 6 the State of Hawaii is amended to read as follows:
 
 7                             "SESSIONS
 
 8      Section 10.  The legislature shall convene [annually] in
 
 9 regular session at 10:00 o'clock a.m. on the third Wednesday in
 
10 January[.] in odd-numbered years only.
 
11      At the written request of two-thirds of the members to which
 
12 each house is entitled, the presiding officers of both houses
 
13 shall convene the legislature in special session.  At the written
 
14 request of two-thirds of the members of the senate, the president
 
15 of the senate shall convene the senate in special session for the
 
16 purpose of carrying out its responsibility established by Section
 
17 3 of Article VI.  The governor may convene both houses or the
 
18 senate alone in special session.
 
19      Regular sessions shall be limited to a period of sixty days,
 

 
Page 2                                                     
                                     S.B. NO.           956
                                                        
                                                        


 1 and special sessions shall be limited to a period of thirty days.
 
 2 Any session may be extended a total of not more than fifteen
 
 3 days.  Such extension shall be granted by the presiding officers
 
 4 of both houses at the written request of two-thirds of the
 
 5 members to which each house is entitled or may be granted by the
 
 6 governor.
 
 7      Each regular session shall be recessed for not less than
 
 8 five days at some period between the twentieth and fortieth days
 
 9 of the regular session.  The legislature shall determine the
 
10 dates of the mandatory recess by concurrent resolution.  Any
 
11 session may be recessed by concurrent resolution adopted by a
 
12 majority of the members to which each house is entitled.
 
13 Saturdays, Sundays, holidays, the days in mandatory recess and
 
14 any days in recess pursuant to a concurrent resolution shall be
 
15 excluded in computing the number of days of any session.
 
16      All sessions shall be held in the capital of the State.  In
 
17 case the capital shall be unsafe, the governor may direct that
 
18 any session be held at some other place."
 
19      SECTION 3.  The question to be printed on the ballot shall
 
20 be as follows:
 
21      "Shall the legislature meet in regular session only in
 
22      odd-numbered years?"
 
23      SECTION 4.  Constitutional material to be repealed is
 

 
Page 3                                                     
                                     S.B. NO.           956
                                                        
                                                        


 1 bracketed.  New constitutional material is underscored.
 
 2      SECTION 5.  This amendment shall take effect upon compliance
 
 3 with article XVII, section 3, of the Constitution of the State of
 
 4 Hawaii.
 
 5 
 
 6                           INTRODUCED BY:  _______________________